When one-first looks as P-O fit, you might wonder what it is. P-O fit stands fir Person-Organization fit. P-O fit can loosely be defined as the “compatibility between employees and their organizations.” (Daly, 2006) Of course, when a company or business hires someone they hope to be there till retirement. We all know, this doesn’t frequently happen. I personally believe P-O fit should be a substantial base for the criteria used in the selection process. I think if you have a person that fits well in the organization or business, even if they are maybe lacking a little bit of the skill or knowledge then you are far ahead of someone that doesn’t fit into the culture but is somewhat knowledgeable on the topic. You can teach someone new skills, but you can’t teach or give someone a new way of thinking or personality.

Looking at a different job selection criterion, P-J fit. P-J fit stand for a person – job fit. What this P-J fit does is it “seeks to align characteristics of individuals and jobs in ways that will result in desired HR (Human Resources) outcome.” (Heneman, Judge, & Kammeyer-Muller, 2012) I think when you are selecting someone for a vacant position you need to look at both the P-O fit and the P-J fit equally. You should require someone that can mesh with the company and easily adheres to the values that they have all while doing a stand-out job in their position. Once more, if there was one you had to lean farther too, I would have to go with the P-O fit.

The problems that can arise can lead to legal issues, which are costly and time consuming. With the P-O selection method being looked at as a more subjective method to hiring verses the P-J selection method being more objective. P-O fit being subjective means that someone selects something based off a more opinion type. P-J fit is more objective, meaning that it is decided on by looking more at one’s skills, and abilities to do the job. When you use the P-O fit, if not set-up properly, legal action can arise because someone feels like they are being secluded because of minority status.

If I were to give advice to an employer about hiring someone based off P-O fit, I would first ask them if they have evaluated their own organizations. Then ask if they know the climate or the atmosphere of the working world around them. If you are going to hire based on P-O fit, you must pick a person that really fits that particular organization. Amy Kristof makes a great point when she is discussing work performance. She says, “individuals with high need for social contact and interdependence with others performed better by these measures in organizations with humanitarian climates than did their less sociable counterparts.” What this means is someone that is socially and vocally active performed better in a job setting promoting something, in this case promoting human welfare. I think to hire someone based off of this fit, you first really must know your organizations or company’s atmosphere.

I think I would use the P-O fit heavily if I were to be hiring someone. The only catch would be, where I was working to hire this someone? And what the places values were? Depending on how those two questions were answered would determine how much I would sway towards P-O fit. I think when hiring someone based off P-O fit there are a few things absolutely needed in deciding. The employee candidate must work well with others. You want a person that can and will work with a team, not someone who is tunnel minded and only thinks their way. When figuring out if they work well with others, this would be a great time to call their references. Asking those references about how that person interacted with customers or other employees will give you a sneak peek into what candidate might be like. Another thing to look for is passion. Does the applicant just need a job, and you’re the first person to call them back? Or are they honest in the fact that they want a job with the culture and values that this company or organization is offering? The best way to bring out a candidate’s passion is by asking them to tell you real-life examples or “stories” that they have previously done or had in other jobs.

To make the decision of hiring someone based on a P-O fit, you should have the applicant’s application, have called their references, and then, of course, bring them into an interview. The interview is the most important and “telling” aspect of hiring. Although the application and references can make for a quick deduction in candidates, the true test is still the interview.

References

Daly, D. (2006). Recruitment and Selection . Retrieved from Degarmo: http://www.degarmo.com/using-person-organization-f…

Heneman, H., Judge, T., & Kammeyer-Muller, J. (2012). Staffing Organizations. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.